


Oblivious

by codevassie



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Crack Fic, Fluff and Humor, Internet, Kidnapping, M/M, Texting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:46:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23749366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/codevassie/pseuds/codevassie
Summary: Sing: Yut-Lung, Shorter, I think I’ve discovered something great.
Relationships: Ash Lynx/Okumura Eiji
Comments: 15
Kudos: 157





	Oblivious

**Author's Note:**

> Originally Posted: February 22, 2019 on [my writing blog](https://codevassie.tumblr.com) where I accept oneshot requests.

Bringing his phone’s camera up, Ash took a quick picture of his shoes, kicked up on the table, to send to Eiji. It wasn’t anything special, anything significant. It was a conversation starter, because Ash was bored out of his mind and, hopefully, Eiji wasn’t too busy with class to reply.

“Nadia’s not gonna like that,” Shorter said from the table next to his in the Wong’s family-owned restaurant. His table, in contrast to Ash’s which held only his dirty red converse, was scattered in papers, covered in an incomprehensible jumble of symbols in light and harsh pencil, two different handwritings. Surprisingly, the lighter was Shorter’s, while the heavier, harsher handwriting was Sing’s, the kid from Shorter’s neighborhood he was helping with homework.

Ash shrugged, but slid his feet off the table, glancing toward the boy next to Shorter. He was frowning down at his paper, scratching his head with a cheap mechanical pencil that had the tip almost chewed completely off. He was short and had a billowy-looking jacket on. It was hard to believe he was a high school student, to be honest, and Ash wondered what it must be like to see him in his university classes. He dual-enrolled at one of the colleges close by. Sing was a smart kid. It made him wonder why he’d go to Shorter, of all people, for help. Most people didn’t typically see Shorter as the “smart” sort.

But Sing had known Shorter for most of his life, apparently. And he looked up to the guy a lot. Not that Ash, as Shorter’s best friend, knew him that well because of it. To be honest, Ash could count on a single hand how many times he’d met the kid over the years.

The kid was weird too. He didn’t really talk to Ash, and refused to look at him when Ash tried to make eye-contact. The second Ash looked away, though, he could feel the kid staring. It was a little unsettling, but he could tell Sing didn’t mean any harm, so he pretty much ignored it.

Ash’s phone buzzed where it was still safely clutched in hand, and his eyes snapped away from the two at the other table. When he looked at the screen, he confirmed his hopes with a slight leap in his heart, and clicked eagerly into his messages where a picture had been sent in response. It was of a pair of tennis shoes, walking along a sidewalk, going by the slight blurriness of the picture. Surprisingly, it was a pretty ugly picture.

Ash: i thought you said you were a photography student damn

Eiji: Meanie! For your information, I am carrying twelve hundred pounds of textbooks in my bag rn so leave me alone >:(

Ash: >:P

Eiji: >:P

Ash chuckled, about to reply again when Shorter’s voice carried over, sounding amused.

“Hey, dude, stop making kissy faces at your phone and come help with this problem.”

Ash looked up, a frown on his face. “I was not making kissy faces,” he said, defensively, shutting off his phone anyway.

“Oh, really?” Shorter asked, voice teasing. “So that _wasn’t_ Eiji you were texting?”

Sing looked up, curious now and suddenly able to look at Ash. It took him aback for a moment. “Eiji?” he asked.

It was Ash’s turn to avoid Sing’s gaze, getting up to move over to the table. He pulled the paper toward him, looking at the problem in question while Shorter took it upon himself to explain.

“Eiji is Ash’s online crush,” he said. Ash sent him a death glare. “Online friend,” he corrected, not sounding too serious about the correction, truthfully. Ash gave up, taking a pencil and scratching out the steps to the problem on a blank sheet.

“Really?” Sing asked, sounding surprised. Ash’s pocket vibrated and he reached for it immediately. Shorter laughed.

Eiji: Natto for lunch! I know how much you like it!

Ash rolled his eyes and got to work typing out a reply. He didn’t notice the contemplative look Sing had adopted as he watched him.

-/-

To tell the truth, Eiji really didn’t like his statistics class. Math had never been his forte, no, but that wasn’t even the worst of it. His professor kind of sucked. In that way where he goes insanely fast through the material, doesn’t work any of it out on the board, and gets irritated when a student has a question. Eiji usually tried to keep an open mind about people, especially math professors, who get bad reps just for being math professors, but this guy really got on his nerves.

But, at least he had friends in this class. When Eiji entered the lecture hall that day, Yut-Lung was already sitting in his usual spot, carefully unpacking materials from his bag and placing them one-by-one on the table. When Eiji approached, he greeted Yut-Lung with a big smile.

“Good afternoon, Yut-Lung!”

Yut-Lung looked up, already sighing. His shoulders were both tense and resigned at once. With an annoyed eye, he observed Eiji moving into the seat, Eiji’s usual spot as well, beside him.

“Eiji Okumura,” he greeted, nothing but cordial. He placed a few pens neatly beside his notebook, then a calculator.

Eiji wasn’t stupid. He knew Yut-Lung wasn’t his biggest fan. But Eiji thought that maybe with a little patience and respect and kindness, he could crack that cold exterior. He wanted to be friends with Yut-Lung, and, believe it or not, he’d already made tremendous progress. It was a little dissuading at times, especially when it was almost the end of semester and Eiji couldn’t think of any reason Yut-Lung would continue seeing him when this class was over, but he wouldn’t give up.

“Hey, guys,” another voice joined and Eiji perked up. When Sing took the seat on the other side of Yut-Lung, Eiji waved. Yut-Lung even spared a ‘hello’ for the boy. Sing was, apparently, a lot better at getting to know Yut-Lung. Instead of dissuading Eiji further, however, it gave him hope. Yut-Lung could be befriended. This was the proof. Plus, Sing was a good friend of Eiji’s too and he couldn’t be mad at him for something like that.

“How are you today, Sing?” Eiji asked as Sing plopped his bag onto the table in front of him and unzipped it. Before Sing could respond, however, Eiji’s phone went off. Though he knew it was rude, Eiji couldn’t help but take it out immediately. It was a text from Ash.

Ash: good luck in hell class today

Eiji beamed at the message as his heart warmed. He’d complained about stat to Ash plenty, who even helped with his homework and studying a lot. The guy was some kind of genius with his double major, double minor, and insane knowledge in the STEM field and politics. If only he could pick what he wanted to do and stick with it.

“Who’s that?” Sing asked and Eiji looked up, blinking, having been too immersed in the phone to pick up what he’d said.

“Huh?”

“He asked who you’re texting after you asked _him_ a question,” Yut-Lung explained, raising a single eyebrow in his direction. Eiji’s cheeks colored.

“Oh, it’s just Ash,” he explained. Yut-Lung rolled his eyes, but he could see a certain softness to them. Eiji had told Yut-Lung about Ash before. It was one topic that seemed to amuse him enough to carry on a conversation with Eiji.

“Ash?” Sing asked, sounding a little off. When Eiji looked over, there was a strange, thrilled look to his face. Eiji furrowed his brows, confused.

“Yes? He’s a friend online. I met him through my blog,” he explained. Sing laughed incredulously. “What?” Eiji asked.

But Sing just shook his head. “Nothing.”

Eiji, confused, looked over at Yut-Lung, but he ,himself, was looking at Sing with narrowed eyes. Eiji opened his mouth to ask again, but, just then, their professor spoke up, starting class. Frowning, Eiji sat back and accepted his fate. He’d just have to ask again later.

Out of sight, Sing began typing on his own phone under the table. Beside him, Yut-Lung’s phone went off in his bag. Elsewhere, Shorter’s buzzed to life.

Sing: Yut-Lung, Shorter, I think I’ve discovered something great.

-/-

It was odd how receptive Yut-Lung had been towards him lately. In class, he nodded a lot more when Eiji spoke to him. He walked with him after class until they had to split, asking questions and even calling him just ‘Eiji’ instead of the dreaded full ‘Eiji Okumura’ which made his name sound like a sin. Yut-Lung had even asked him to lunch a couple times these past few weeks.

He was a huge gossip, Eiji came to find, and used to his advantage in conversations. Eiji could gossip, and Yut-Lung loved hearing it all. For someone who liked to keep to himself, he sure liked to know everything about everyone.

One topic that Eiji already knew was a favorite of Yut-Lung’s came up quite often. But, of that, Eiji was a bit more reluctant to talk about. Ash was… special. He was Eiji’s friend. He trusted Eiji with all he told about himself. But Yut-Lung didn’t seem too interested in the personal stuff. Mostly, well…

“You haven’t told Ash how you feel yet?”

“What? How-” Eiji had squeaked, eyes wide, but Yut-Lung had waved it off.

“It’s _very_ obvious,” he said. “Painfully.”

So. There was that. But there was also a lot of questions about the two in general. How did they meet? Did they know where one another lived? Did they know each other’s full names or what they looked like? The answer to most of these was no. Eiji and Ash didn’t talk about the surface personal things. But, they had shared pictures of themselves once before.

“So he knows what you look like?” Yut-Lung had asked, looking very interested.

“Yes?” Eiji had responded, feeling like he was missing something from the look in Yut-Lung’s eyes. But it was never explained.

As odd as it all was, Eiji was mostly just happy that he was finally getting through to Yut-Lung. And sometimes even without Sing around. Eiji was finally allowing himself to believe that maybe their friendship could survive past the semester.

So, when Yut-Lung invited him and Sing to lunch after yet another horrible statistics class, it wasn’t a surprise. Eiji cheerfully packed up his things and they headed out, walking to a simple cafe. It wasn’t Yut-Lung’s style but, having gone to lunch with Eiji and Sing, two horribly broke _normal_ college students, he’d learned to adapt.

Today, Sing was very excited for some reason. Even Yut-Lung allowed a small smile as they walked along the sidewalk of busy lunch rush Manhattan. When Eiji had asked them about it, however, they brushed it off, leaving Eiji a bit put off. He frowned, but allowed them to continue on, walking without conversation.

When they arrived at the cafe, they approached the line and Eiji scanned the menu above the counter, outlined in chalk. Usually, Eiji just ordered a soup, but he might go for a sandwich today.

Eiji was standing directly behind someone who was taller than him, with a yellow hoodie and purple mohawk. It was a pretty cool mohawk, but Eiji knew better than to stare, so he shifted to the side in order to look up at the menu. The movement, though, was enough to bring the guy’s attention to him.

His eyes lit up as he took him in. When Eiji noticed, he looked behind him, wondering if it only looked as though the stranger looked… excited. To see… him. Eiji, however, didn’t find anything behind him to warrant the reaction. When he turned back, the guy was giving Sing a thumbs up. “Heya, Sing.”

“Shorter, what’s up, man?” Sing asked, looking behind and around the guy for a second, as if for something specific. Something missing.

“Nothing much. Just stopping by for lunch with my bud,” Shorter said, and somewhere in Eiji’s mind the name sounded familiar. Maybe Sing had mentioned him before? “He stepped into the bathroom, but he’ll be back.”

“Perfect,” Sing said. And that was a weird thing to say. But then Eiji’s phone buzzed and, for a second, he hoped it was a text from Ash, until the buzzing continued, signaling it was a call. He slipped it out of his pocket, checking the caller ID.

“Crap,” he cursed, pressing answer immediately. “Hi, Ibe. I’m sorry; I forgot I said I’d help you today. I’m on my way right now.”

Listening to Ibe’s reply, Eiji nodded, reassuring the man it was no big deal - that he could make it. He hurried to get off the phone, embarrassed at his blunder, and ready to rush over as quickly as he could.

When he did get off the phone, he turned to apologize to his friends. He was surprised to find they were already standing, watching him. Sing looked a little panicked. Even his friend Shorter looked like he had swallowed something whole, the uncomfortable feeling stuck in his throat. Eiji, however, didn’t have time.

“I’m really sorry, guys. I totally forgot I had something scheduled.”

Yut-Lung, ever the quickest and most snappish, immediately spoke up. “ _Now_. It has to be _now_?”

“Yeah, I’m really sorry. I’ll make it up to you guys,” Eiji said, already backing away and checking the time. He could make it if he hurried. The shoot would be starting soon. “Bye, guys!”

And, with that, he darted out the door.

When Ash came out of the bathroom, he took in the scene. Shorter, Sing, who he hadn’t expected to see there, and one other guy he didn’t know, staring blankly out the door, a large empty gap between them and the register, and the employee behind it looking irritatedly their way.

“What did I miss?” he asked.

-/-

Ash was content to scroll through his phone for the rest of the day if he could. Over and over again through the same five photos. Because Eiji had uploaded new pictures to his blog, and Ash loved Eiji’s photography. It had been the reason he’d first found Eiji’s blog, spamming his own with reblogs enough that Eiji had actually reached out to say thank you. It had been a little embarrassing, but one of the best decisions of his life. If he hadn’t gone all stalker mode on Eiji’s beautiful photos, they probably would have never talked and then where would Ash be?

Not only were the photos beautiful, though, but they were completely new. Since coming to university in America, Eiji hadn’t posted anything. These were the very first, and they were of a city so alike New York that Ash held onto the tiniest hope that it was. Hence, why he seemed to determined to stare at them all day. Why he scanned them for anything familiar; why he took in every detail he could. It was a stretch. He knew that. There were plenty of cities Eiji could have gone for university. But it didn’t stop that incessant little hope.

One picture was of a tree in a city park, framed with green grass below and grey buildings above. Another was of a bakery display, the colors of each pastry popping with Eiji’s brilliant use of angles and light. Ash didn’t know much about photography, but just by how pleasing it was to the natural eye, he could tell Eiji was good.

“Let’s go out to lunch,” Shorter said.

“Are we going all the way across town again?” Ash asked. When Shorter hummed, Ash sighed. “You own a restaurant. Why do you want to go so far to grab a sandwich?”

“We don’t serve sandwiches!” Shorter protested. Ash continued to examine the photo he was on for the umpteenth time, committing it to memory. It was a street corner. No street signs. It actually looked like a dump, to be honest. It showed an alley with some trash and crumbling brick walls, but the color in the setting sun was vibrant. The red of the bricks and paleness of the sidewalk. Somehow, Eiji had directed a unique lens on the scene, as if he was looking on it all with a tender gaze. How he could see the alley with such tenderness mystified and enthralled Ash.

“The place up the street serves sandwiches,” Ash responded absently. The picture was so like New York. Ash hoped it was New York.

Maybe he should just ask Eiji…

No. That was a horrible idea. Why would Eiji trust him with that information? He was just some random dude online.

“I told Sing I’d meet him after his class, though,” Shorter argued and Ash sighed, giving up on the image for now. He put the phone in his pocket and stood up.

“Fine,” he conceded. Shorter whooped and they left. They took the bus and chatted a little. Shorter told him they were meeting Sing at a food stand, then heading to the park to meet with some of Sing’s friends. Ash grumbled a bit about meeting people, but mostly looked out the window for the ride, watching the Manhattan landscape slide past.

That was when he saw it.

He jumped to his feet, hand on the rope above their heads and calling for a stop. Shorter was already asking what the hell was up, but Ash just darted off the bus when it stopped, hoping his friend would just follow. He couldn’t explain until they were there. He didn’t want to say his suspicions out loud until he knew for sure.

It probably wasn’t anyway. He was getting his hopes up.

Ash ran until he stopped in front of an alley beside a shoe store. It wasn’t sunset, the trash had shifted and changed a bit, but, if he stood just so. Yes. That was it.

“He’s in New York,” Ash breathed.

That was when Shorter caught up. “What the hell, man?” he yelled, out of breath, but Ash was still standing, transfixed.

He was right. Eiji was here. He was _right_.

But he still couldn’t bring himself to tell his friend. Suddenly, the knowledge felt too big, too much. It was real, so real, but it was too big for him to speak of. Shorter was his best friend, but he couldn’t bring himself to share his elation.

Because this brought on a whole new dilemma. Was he going to say something to Eiji?

“Ash, come on dude,” Shorter begged now. “I told Sing we’d be there. His friends are going to be waiting at the park.”

But Ash shook his head. “I’m not going.”

“What?” Shorter asked, voice suddenly strangled.

“I have to go,” Ash said, tearing his eyes away from the alley.

“But- Ash!” Shorter protested, but Ash was already walking away. He felt his friend keeping pace beside him, hand gestures wide and voice incredulous, demanding to know what was up, trying to persuade him to turn around, to come with him. Ash shook his head again and again.

In the end, he got Shorter to go without him. He had told Sing he’d meet up with him; he should go.

When Ash boarded the bus headed back to their end of town, Shorter cursed.

“Damn it,” he sighed, watching the bus pull away.

That night, Eiji posted a picture of a park full of people and a grey sky.

-/-

“I’m getting real tired of their shit,” Sing stated one evening when the three of them - him, Yut-Lung, and Shorter - met up.

“ _You’re_ getting tired?” Yut-Lung cried. “ _You_ don’t have to deal with them directly. Do you know how many times Eiji has looked the wrong way at the wrong time? Had to run off? Been lost in his thoughts? They’ve stood three feet apart on the subway and there was nothing I could do to get them to actually see each other!”

“And they haven’t even been texting each other all that much lately,” Shorter said. “I ask about Eiji and Ash gets _really_ weird these days.”

“Do you think they know?” Sing asked, looking alarmed. Sure, that was their goal, but they’d worked so hard for it to be a surprise.

“Eiji is oblivious. I ask him constantly for updates on Ash. He doesn’t tell me much either, but he does say enough that I know he doesn’t get how close they are.” Yut-Lung said, flicking a piece of hair out of his face.

Shorter just shrugged. “Like I said, Ash gets weird when I ask about Eiji. I don’t know anything.”

“You don’t think something happened between them?” Sing asked, looking back and forth between Yut-Lung and Shorter, gauging their reactions. The two looked at each other, frowning.

“Time for more sleuthing?” Shorter asked. Yut-Lung gave a flat look, then shook his head.

“I say we continue. Seeing each other’s stupid faces will be enough to solve whatever petty feud they have.”

“Our plans aren’t exactly working though,” Sing pointed out, to which Yut-Lung sent a less than pleased look.

“It’s time for a more direct route then,” he said, whipping out his phone. “I am done with this scheme.”

-/-

Eiji: Hey! How are you today?

Eiji spent a tremendous amount of time looking at their chat after sending this message before giving up and putting his phone away. He looked out the window of his apartment, noting the soft light and gentle sky. It really was picturesque. It was one of the reasons he had gotten the apartment, other than the fact that it was close by the university and was kind of affordable-ish. He wasn’t in the mood for photography at the moment, though.

It had been a week since he’d had a real conversation with Ash. He supposed it wasn’t that long, really. He didn’t even contact home weekly. But, when it came to Ash, the absence was like an ache in his chest - in his heart.

He tried to reassure himself that it was just because Ash was busy. It was close to midterms, after all. It wasn’t anything Eiji had done. It wasn’t… right? Or, worse, Ash couldn’t have been getting tired of him?

Eiji shook his head, ridding his mind of the thoughts. It wouldn’t do him any good to lose himself in them. Instead, he stood and grabbed his camera bag and wallet, heading for the door. Maybe he was in the mood for photography. Just not here.

He wanted to calm down and forget the world through the lens of his camera. He wanted to stretch his legs throughout the city of New York. New York was beautiful, from its most beautiful buildings to its most rundown alleys. Everything there had character, had a story, and Eiji wanted to discover that story.

So, swinging his camera bag over his shoulder, Eiji stepped into his shoes by the door. He shrugged on his cardigan, patted himself down for his keys and phone - his hand rested on his phone, imagining the annoying chime lighting up his day with a reply from Ash.

He hoped he heard from Ash soon.

Then Eiji stepped out the door. Before he even heard the thump and click of it shutting behind him, before he could turn to lock it up and be headed on his way-

Eiji saw black.

-/-

Ash wasn’t putting up with this shit. He didn’t know why Blanca was even here, but it was bullshit that he could still subdue Ash so easily. When he came to in a strange place - elaborate decor, but not of the fashion Ash was used to; he really had no idea where he was - he was fuming when he saw Blanca’s face first. The bastard had made the mistake of leaving him unbound, though, and he was about to learn exactly how much of a mistake that was-

But then-

“What the hell, Yut-Lung?” a familiar voice exclaimed and Ash’s head snapped in its direction. Shorter was walking into the room, straight for Ash. “This is not what I had in mind when you said a more direct route.”

“This way there’s no chance for them to not see each other.”

“You’re insane,” Shorter stated, turning back to him suddenly, but Yut-Lung just rolled his eyes, opening his mouth to squabble further until Blanca cleared his throat, silencing them both.

“He’s awake,” Blanca announced. They both turned suddenly to Ash.

“Ash!” Shorter exclaimed, rushing up to him. “Are you hurt?”

Instead of answering, Ash blinked once. Then twice. “Shorter,” he said. “What. The. Fuck.”

“I’m sorry, man. I didn’t know that bastard was gonna-”

“ _Excuse_ me?” Yut-Lung exclaimed from not too far away. Shorter turned back ready to argue again. While they were arguing, Ash had a short stare down with a blatantly unamused Blanca. He sat forward in the chair he had been thrown into, a simple fold-out one - not very comfortable.

That’s when a new voice joined the mix. And this one was one Ash had never heard before. He turned toward the door where two figures had come in, Sing and another boy, looking groggy and rubbing at his head. Ash furrowed his brow, examining the boy. Something about him looked familiar.

“What’s going on?”

All faces turned toward him. All went silent. Then, there was a lot of back and forths, shaking heads. They seemed to be looking between him and the boy. Ash, puzzled, looked again at the other.

The boy, too, seemed to catch on, looking to where everyone else was, and his eyes connected with Ash’s. Suddenly, Ash could piece together why the boy looked so familiar. How could he have not seen it before? This was- This was-

“Eiji?” Ash asked, incredulous. Eiji’s eyes widened and something clicked in his eyes too.

“Ash!” he said, rushing forward. Ash leaped up just in time to catch Eiji in his arms. “Oh my gosh! How are you here?”

“How are _you_ here?” Ash asks back, setting Eiji back down to look at him, to really take in the fact that he was here - right in front of him. Eiji still looks surprised, but he’s beaming up at him, laughing.

“I- I don’t-” he laughs, then turns back to Sing. Ash looks towards Sing too, one eyebrow raised, while Sing rapidly starts to turn dark and darker shades of red.

“It- it was Yut-Lung’s idea!” he exclaimed.

“You said it was fine!” Yut-Lung argued.

“You said _what_?” Shorter asked, looking betrayed.

“I thought he was joking!”

“Wait,” Eiji suddenly spoke up, and everyone looked over. He was looking right at Shorter. “You’re Sing’s friend from the sandwich shop!”

Everyone went silent. Shorter’s eyes went a little wide. Ash looked between them all, his own gaze landing on the one occupant in the room he probably knew the least.

And- that guy-

Yut-Lung must have noticed his stare, because he looked toward him with a raised brow. He looked like he was waiting for something.

Then, it clicked. _Oh_.

“Oh my god.”

“Twelve different attempts to have you two meet,” Yut-Lung said. “You’re welcome.”

Ash and Eiji looked at each other. Something seemed to pass through their gazes and they burst into laughter. The rest of the room looked on, Shorter smiling, Sing looking a little shocked. Yut-Lung sighed, but there was the smallest trace of a smile on his lips.

“Can I go?” Blanca asked from the corner.


End file.
